(Props: MMADiehards)
You may know Kurt Pellegrino as the wacky-ass UFC fighter who will fart and shake-weight for your amusement, but listening to his new interview for MMA Diehards, it’s clear that his decision to walk away from the sport was something he took very seriously. As he explains, he didn’t want to be away from his new son in the same way that he missed spending time with his daughter due to the demands of training, and retirement has been on his mind since his fight against Rob Emerson back in February 2009. He also claims that he would still be retiring even if he won his last fight against Gleison Tibau. As he says at the 2:44 mark:
“I did not want to fight no more when I fought George Sotiropoulos. I had three leg surgeries. I shattered my hand. I got kicked in the face by Alberto Crane to where the right side of my brain hurt for a month…I have a hard time boxing because my hands hurt. And then when I fought George, I didn’t think I wanted to do it no more. Even when I fought Fabricio [Camoes], I just didn’t want to do it. It’s not fair for me or the UFC for me to be in their organization and not give a shit. So I think the most noble thing to do is to step away and give someone else an opportunity.”
Good luck, Batman, and thanks for the memories.